Adapting to a Changing Environment

Caribbean Coastal Area Management (C-CAM) Foundation

Clarendon, Jamaica

An Overview Of Our Solution

Who is this solution impacting?
Ecosystem
Oceans
Oceans/Coasts
Community Type
Rural
Rural
Additional Information
  • Population Impacted:
  • Continent: North America
General Info

Address

P.O. Box 33, Lionel Town
Clarendon
Jamaica

Email

iparchment@yahoo.com
Problem

Population impacted

50,000 (Portland Bight Protected Area (PBPA))

Size

1876 square kilometers (marine and terrestrial)

Major Occupations

fishing, charcoal burning, workers on sugar estate, small farming, teachers, shopkeepers, bar operators, hair dressers, mechanics & taxi operators

Local resources the community depends on, and for what purpose

(1) fish ? to eat & sell (2) trees (including mangroves) ? fence pots, pot sticks, charcoal, bees.

Local threats to resources

overexploitation ? fishing using dynamite which kills fish and habitat, taking resources (e.g. lobster) during close season, catching juvenile fish. Forest resources are cut without any replanting including primary forest and forest cover impacting plant

Climate Hazards

drought, hurricanes, flooding, and storm surge

Level of sensitivity

The hazards have caused loss of life, damage to habitat and great damage to property ?houses, boats, net, pots, shops, bars & fishing sheds. This has meant that persons have depleted their meager savings to try to recover but are still struggling especially with the frequency of events.

Level of adaptive capacity

In a recent survey done by C-CAM in two of the communities within the Portland Bight Protected Area many persons indicated that they were still suffering from the impacts of hurricane Ivan 2004. Going through the communities you can still see the damaged boats, shops, bars & houses that persons have abandoned or continue to use even in that state of disrepair. Many of the community members are poor and at the lower literacy levels and the options for recovery and growth are limited. The Government and other support agencies including C-CAM have given aid to assist with recovery from damage, however this is usually not enough especially in light of the level and frequency of impacts. There are still those who have relatives & friends abroad who assist and others on overseas pension who are able to cope better and recover more quickly. Where livelihoods and houses are both impacted that makes recovery more difficult ? e.g. pots lost at sea and house damaged by wind damage or flooding. Additionally the damage to mangroves impact on the habitat of the fish and reduces the fish catch.
Solution

? Diversified or alternative livelihoods ? Improved food security ? Improved hazard risk management ? Improved use of water resources or other natural ecosystem services The solution is to start boat tours using fishers boats (which would be retrofitted) to take visitors (local & overseas) out to experience the wetlands, coastline and nearby cays. This would introduce a new livelihood to the area. It will also mean that the participants will be spending less time fishing and therefore allowing the fish stocks to rebuild. The reduced dependence on the fish will also mean that there is the possibility of a more steady income which is less vulnerable to the impacts of the hazards.

Results

Ecological Benefit

More & bigger fish for due to reduced pressure on the resources

Economic Indicators used to measure benefit

Monitoring results Anecdotal information from other fishers

Community/Social Cost

Time to participate in training Only a few can participate at this stage which provides conflict for those not included

Community/Social Benefit

Increased knowledge

Community/Social Indicators used to measure benefit

Number of participants in sessions Growth in the number of participants in the programme over time

Economic Cost

Training Licensing & permits Insurance

Economic Benefit

Additional Income generated More money

Ecological Indicators used to measure benefit

Socioeconomic study Reports from participants

What were/are the challenges your community faced in implementing this solution?

(1)Who could be involved (2) Who would pay for training (3) Would they be able to meet the requirements set by Government to operate the boat tours legally (4) Can they afford the insurance (5) Would they have time for the training and continuing with the fishing (6) How would we get persons to go on the tours (7) What if no one comes on the tour (8) What if the weather is good and they want to go to sea even though tours are booked. Solutions: It was agreed that the participants would be users of the resources, owners of registered boats, must participate fully in the training & share the cost. The project that C-CAM is implementing provides support for training, equipment purchase, insurance payments and other start- up costs. Our organization is assisting with getting the necessary permits, licenses and will do the marketing of the tours. We agreed to have a roster of fishers/boat men and if the assigned one could not go out for any reason they would advise us ahead of time and we would replace them with the next person on the roster. Risks: Not enough visitors will come and fishers get disheartened and go back to fishing only.

Action

Describe the community-based process used to develop the solution including tools and processes used

? Include any assessments that were completed (e.g. socio-economic, ecological, threat, and/or vulnerability assessments) ? Include information on how the most vulnerable stakeholder groups in the community were included the decision making process. ? Include partners/organizations who were involved in supporting the solution and their roles. ? Length of implementation. ? Include current management systems used to support the solution. Assessments on the impacts from hazards such as hurricanes, flooding, storm surge have been done by Planning Institute of Jamaica PIOJ ? Old Harbour Bay, Portland Cottage & Rocky Point (http://www.pioj.gov.jm/portals/0/sustainable_development/jamaica_climate_change_paper.pdf), & C-CAM https://www.dropbox.com/s/7kqs3703glciwl1/POST%20IVAN%20REPORT%20-%20IAIN.ppt (https://www.dropbox.com/s/xy0g7hrqc1k88hb/GIS%20Presentation2.ppt) & https://www.dropbox.com/s/rs1oz3bh9u5ubse/GIS%20Presentation3.ppt on some communities within the PBPA. Socio-economic studies have been done by C-CAM https://www.dropbox.com/s/bwjs8sxfzicu18p/Chap3eSaltWelcome.doc and https://www.dropbox.com/s/cgqmf8n486hqbt6/Chap3gMitchTown.doc community profiles have been conducted by the Social Development Commission (SDC). C-CAM operates through a process of co-management which includes stakeholders in planning and implementation of programmes & projects. We ensure that representatives from all groups are included in the discussions. The targeted groups for these sessions were those persons who are involved in the use of natural resources since the focus of the intervention is to provide alternative livelihoods which are less vulnerable and would also result in reduced use of these resources. A meeting was held with stakeholders to discuss the hazards and possible solutions. The solution being implemented by C-CAM under the project includes piloting development of boat tours using fishers boats. The partners include boat owners/fishers who will be tour operators and community reps who will be tour guides. The project implementation phase has being extended to October 2013. C-CAM is in the process of completing a participatory management plan for the PBPA to include Climate Change Adaptation strategy as well as Sustainable Development & Quality of Life.

Climate hazard of concern

Other

How does your solution reduce the exposure of and buffer/protect the ecosystem affected?

The solution is targeting alternative livelihood development.

How has your solution increased the capacity of the ecosystem to adapt to potential climate changes?

Having fishers or users of the resources that are threatened reduce their pressure on those resources will allow them time to adapt.

How does your solution reduce the exposure of and buffer/protect the communities affected?

Not applicable

How does your solution reduce the sensitivity of the communities affected?

As we move further into the implementation of this project we will continue to engage the fishers around issues relating to Climate Change & adaptation issues. Some communities already have the Disaster Risk Management plans & Climate Change Action plans that we helped them to work on under another project.

How has your solution increased the capacity of local communities to adapt to potential climate changes?

Having the fishers involved in alternative livelihood activities such as the boat tours that we are implementing will diversify their income base and allow them to be better able to adapt to the impacts that the fishing industry is being affected by. It will also mean that even while still being involved in fisheries the tours will provide an income that can assist them in recovering more quickly by having some possible savings to repair damaged or replace lost gear in a timelier manner.

Scale

Can this solution be replicated elsewhere?

The solution can be replicated elsewhere. To make it successful it is needed that participants as well as the wider community and other stakeholders need to be engaged from early on and buy-into the need and agree on the proposed solution. There are boat tours in other areas but sometime the private sector entity uses their own boats, fishers might use their own but not as organized. This solution is innovative because it is an engagement/partnership between an NGO and fishers with funding through Government (from EU funds). The solution is unique to the area as well. It is important to note that this is not just an income generating activity but one that targets users of the resources whose lives & livelihoods as well as the resources are under threat.

Overview
Solution
Scale